A Quick History of Math

April 1, 2021
Grades 3-6 This irreverent, surprisingly amusing historical review of mathematical principles and properties should keep its intended middle-grade audience turning the pages. Facing spreads introduce over 50 topics that range through time and across civilizations, beginning with prehistoric notched animal bones and continuing on through counting systems, breakthroughs, and notable people and machines, and on to big data and future math. Pages teem with concise, easily understood entries, interesting fonts, wise-cracking cartoon characters, factoids, charts, graphs, equations, time lines, and other helpful visuals that help convey often abstract concepts. There is the occasional Briticism, coverage stops in 2019, and there are no sources for further information, but the accessible explanations, upbeat tone, and attention-getting illustrations make this an attractive package. This fun offering from the Quick Histories series (2 titles) should help spice up any dusty math shelves.

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